2 Army engineering brigades to lead rebuilding of Marawi City

Two Army engineering brigades will lead the rebuilding of Marawi City, the military said on Wednesday.

The 52nd and 54th Engineer Brigades will be utilized as the core units of the Joint Engineering Task Force for the reconstruction of Marawi, Lt. Col. Emmanuel Garcia of Joint Task Force Marawi said in a televised press briefing.

A brigade consists of about 1,500 soldiers.

“They will be also complemented by other units from different branches of the AFP [Armed Forces of the Philippines]. The Naval Engineer Brigade “Seabees of the Navy and units from the Air Force’s different Engineer Wings will be part of the Engineering task force,” Garcia said.

He also said that military engineers have constructed more than 2,000 community-related projects nationwide since 2007, ranging from school buildings, farm-to-market roads, rural electrification projects, barangay water systems, and day care and health centers.

“The AFP engineer units construct projects in conflict-affected areas which civilian construction companies cannot penetrate,” Garcia said.

The 54th Engineer Brigade, in particular, constructed the Basilan circumferential road. Frances Mangosing/JE